The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Philodendron plant, botanically known as Philodendron tatei Krause spp. melanochlorum (Bunting) Bunting, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name `Congo`.
The new Philodendron is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Altha, Fla. The objective of the breeding program was to develop new Philodendrons that were self-heading, not vining, and self-supporting with distinctive plant form and growth habit, thick leaves, rapid growth rate and shorter petioles than plants of the parent selection.
The new Philodendron originated from a self-pollination made by the Inventor on Aug. 19, 1993, of an unidentified selection of the Philodendron tatei Krause spp. melanochlorum (Bunting) Bunting. The cultivar `Congo` was discovered and selected by the Inventor on Apr. 21, 1995, as a fully grown plant in a 20-cm container within the progeny of the self-pollination in a controlled environment in Altha, Fla.
Compared to plants of the parent selection, plants of the new Philodendron are more vigorous, branch earlier, are more freely branching, and have a fuller plant habit and shorter petioles.
Asexual propagation of the new Philodendron by tissue culture at Altha, Fla. has shown that the unique features of this new Philodendron plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.